Many functions of modern devices in automotive, consumer and industrial applications, such as converting electrical energy and driving an electric motor or an electric machine, rely on semiconductor devices. For example, Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistors (IGBTs), Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistors (MOSFETs) and diodes, to name a few, have been used for various applications including, but not limited to switches in power supplies and power converters.
A semiconductor device is usually configured to conduct a load current along a load current path between two load terminals of the device. Further, the load current path may be controlled by means of a control electrode, sometimes referred to as gate electrode. For example, upon receiving a corresponding control signal from, e.g., a driver unit, the control electrode may set the semiconductor device in one of a conducting state and a blocking state.
The control electrode may be buried within a trench extending into a semiconductor body of the semiconductor device. Such configuration is usually referred to as trench gate configuration. The trenches may be implemented as so-called needle trenches that are distributed within a cell field of the semiconductor device. Alternatively, the trenches may be implemented in a so-called stripe configuration, wherein such stripe trenches may be arranged substantially in parallel to each other, each of such stripe trench extending laterally throughout substantially the entire active region bordering the non-active region of the semiconductor device that may surround the active region.
Occasionally, such stripe trench may house more than only one electrode, e.g., two electrodes, wherein the more than one electrodes may be insulated from each other and receive separate control signal.
To this end, both electrodes included within the stripe trench may need to be contacted such that the separate control signals may be provided to them. For example, such a configuration is referred to as dual-poly-trench-concept.